Vacancy for Digital Archivist at University of Cambridge

Digital Preservation Coalition; Cambridge; On-site; GBP 30,000 - 45,000; Full time

Job summary

The Digital Preservation Coalition is seeking a Digital Archivist at the University of Cambridge to support an exciting 3-year initiative to complete a Digital Preservation Programme. The role involves developing workflows, managing digital archives, and collaborating with various teams to establish sustainable preservation practices.

Qualifications

• Intermediate general IT literacy with basic programming familiarity.
• Knowledge of archival and digital preservation theory and standards.
• Ability to assess risks and inform preservation planning.

Responsibilities

• Develop and improve processes for digital Archivist workflows.
• Appraise and catalogue born-digital archives.
• Train and support professional archivists.

Skills

Management and preservation of digital archives

Communication

Teamworking

Problem-solving skills

Education

Qualification in Archive Administration / Records Management or Library and Information Studies

Job description

• Vacancy for Digital Archivist at University of Cambridge

Vacancy for Digital Archivist at University of Cambridge

1 September 2024

Cambridge, England

Fixed Term

The Cambridge University Libraries (CUL) is due to complete a 5-year Digital Preservation Programme by July 2026, which will result in the development of a Digital Preservation Service, including infrastructure, tools, and guidance to support digital preservation.

Fixed-term: This is a fixed-term 3-year post, due to limited funding for a specific purpose.

Alongside digitised assets created by CUL's Cultural Heritage Imaging Laboratory and external suppliers, as well as the University's research outputs, born-digital archives are another category of content in scope for long-term preservation. It is expected that the acquisition of digital archives will grow in future, in both volume and variety.

At this exciting and critical juncture, we are hiring a Digital Archivist for three years initially to aid the completion of the Digital Preservation Programme and transition its services to 'business-as-usual', working closely with the Archives and Modern Manuscripts and Digital Preservation teams.

The Digital Archivist will - Develop, document, implement, and improve processes and workflows. - Appraise, acquire, and catalogue born-digital archives and support their ingest and access. - Train and support professional archivists and other curatorial staff. - Liaise with record creators, information compliance officers, and IT systems managers/developers to develop guidance and advocate for the management and archiving of core digital University records. - Use existing digital infrastructure and tools as well as those under development or to be developed in future and advise on archival requirements. - Provide advice to stakeholders on the curation of digital archives.

This is an exciting role to support CUL's digital archives, and we are seeking to work with an individual with the following experience: - Management and preservation of digital archives. - Intermediate general IT literacy and basic familiarity with relevant computer programming, storage infrastructure, and information security. - Knowledge of archival and digital preservation theory and standards and their applications to managing digital archives. - Excellent communication and teamworking skills.

Ideally, the role holder will also demonstrate the ability to liaise with and influence stakeholders, assess risks and issues to inform preservation planning and actions using research and problem-solving skills, and delegate and coordinate tasks, with a qualification in Archive Administration /Records Management or Library and Information Studies or similar relevant qualification.